Slicing machine



Feb, M 3956 T. w. WKNEBERG ETAL 2,497,646

SLICING MACHINE Filed. Dec. 7, 1944! 5 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTORS Tray/s Wl V/nber'g Raymond 4. Ames M52 wa ATTORNEYS F 1950 T. w. WINBERG ET AL 95 I SLICING MACHINE Filed Dec. 7, 1944 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTOR 1950 T. w.WINBERG ET AL 2 3 SLICING MACHINE Filed Dec. 7, 1944 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INV EN TORS Tran 7'5 W l V/nber' Y Pay/wand A. Ames ATTORNEYS Feb. 14,1950 T. w. WINBERG ET AL.

SLICING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Dec. '7, 1944 I N V EN TORST/aw's W. W/flb e/"g Raymond 4 4/7/65 f ATTORNEYS Feb. 14, 1950 T. w.WINBERG ET AL 2,497,646

SLICING MACHINE Filed Dec. 7, 1944 s Sheets-Sheet 5 IN VEN TORS Tra /sM4 W/nber'g BY Raymond A. Ame:

ATTORNEYS i atented CB. 1 4,

SLICING MACHINE Travis W. Winberg and Raymond A. Ames, Beaumont, Tex.,assignors to Toledo Scale Company, Toledo, Ohio, a corporation of NewJersey Application December 7, 1944, Serial No. 566,983

3 Claims. (01. 146*105) This invention relates to slicing machines andin particular to improvements permitting automatic feeding of thecommodity and precise stacking of the sliced commodity.

An ordinary slicing machine, as it is designed for use in retail butchershops, has a commodity carrier or tray which may be reciprocated pastthe cutting edge of a rotary knife. There is no provision forautomatically feeding the material against the gauge plate as each sliceis removed without at the same time pushing it against the knife andknife guard. Neither is there any provision made for neatly shinglestacking the severed slices. The term shingle stacking is used todescribe stacking the slices of the commodity with each slice laterallydisplaced from the adjacent slice like shingles on a roof Shinglestacking permits easy separation of the individual slices of the slicedcommodity. Ordinary slicing machines of the manual feed type require theoperator continuously to feed the commodity against the gauge plate andknife. Others employ gravity or a spring to feed the material. In any ofthese slicers appreciable friction is developed between the commodityand the gauge plate or knife because of the continuous application offeeding force. Another defect present in the ordinary machine is that noprovision is made for taking care of the severed slices other than toallow them to drop haphazardly onto a receiving tray.

The object of this invention is to provide a slicing machine employingan automatically released commodity clamp to allow gravity to feed thecommodity against the gauge plate at the start of each slicing motionand thereafter to clamp the commodity in the commodity carrier duringthe remainder of the slicing motion.

Another object is to provide a conveyor for the sliced commodity whichis disposed to receive the slices as they fall from the knife and whichis indexed forwardly during each slicing motion so that the severedslices are shingle stacked.

Another object is to provide a power driven slicing machine having apower driven commodity carrier adapted to clamp the commodity during theslicing stroke and to advance the conveyor at the end of each slicingstroke.

These and other objects and advantages are attained in the structureshown in the drawings which are used to illustrate an embodiment of theinvention. I

In the drawings:

Figure I is a plan view of a slicing machine embodying the invention.

Figure II is a front elevation of the slicing machine.

Figure III is a plan view, with parts broken away, to show the operatingmechanism of the slicing machine.

Figure IV is a fragmentary section taken along the line IVIV of FigureIII.

Figure V has a fragmentary vertical section showing the gauge platesupporting means taken substantially along the line VV of Figure III.

Figure VI is a vertical section through the conveyor driving mechanismtaken substantially along the line VI--VI of Figure III.

Figure VII is a vertical longitudinal section showing the gauge plateadjusting means and part of the conveyor driving mechanism takensubstantially along the line VII--VII of Figure III.

Figure VIII is a longitudinal vertical section taken substantially alongthe line VIII-VIII of Figure III.

Figure IX is an enlarged fragmentary detail of the conveyor drive asseen from the line IX-IX of Figure III.

' Figure X is a side elevation, with parts broken away, as seen from theline X--X of Figure III and showing the mechanism for reciprocating acommodity carrier.

Figure XI is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line X[-XI ofFigure X.

Figure XII is a detail view, partly-in section, of the clamp releasemechanism taken along the line XIIXII of Figure XI.

Figure XIII is a vertical section of the commodity clamp taken along theline XIII-XIII of Figure I.

These specific figures and the accompanying description are intendedmerely to illustrate the invention and not to impose limitations on theclaims.

According to the invention, a slicing machine is provided with ahorizontally disposed rotary knife'and a gauge plate radially adjacentthe rotary knife. A commodity carrier is provided to carry the commodityto be sliced past an exposed cutting edge of the rotary knife. Thecommodity carrier incorporates a clamp which holds the commodity firmlyin position while a slice is being severed and which at the end of eachslicing stroke momentarily releases the commodity toallow it to dropagainst the gauge plate. In this arrangement the commodity is firmlygripped during the greater part of the time so as to ensure smooth,uniform slices and yet no undue pressure and friction is producedbetween the commodity and the gauge plate or knife. In addition to thisself-feeding feature, the improved slicing machine also incorporates aconveyor adapted to receive the severed slices and deliver them neatlystacked ready to be wrapped or to be placed on display. In the improvedslicer the commodity tray is mechanically driven from the same motorthat drives the rotary knife. The

commodity clamp release and the intermittent.

drive for the conveyor are both actuated by the motion of the commoditytray in order to ob.- tain exact synchronism of these functions. Thistype of drive also permits the use of an easy. simple means for varyingthe advance of the conveyor per slice.

For convenience in cleaning, the conveyor isassembled on a frame whichis removably mounted in the base of the slicing machine. The conveyor isdriven from the slicing machine mechanism by a ratchet not only so thatits ad- Vance per slice may be regulated but also so that it may bemanually advanced to deliver the slices thereon after the slicingmechanism has stopped.

A slicing machine embodying these. improvements is. illustrated in thedrawings. This slicing machine comprises a main frame I in which ismounted. a horizontally disposed rotary knife 2. The rotary knife 2 has,its; cutting edge raised above the plane of the remainder of the knife.The rotary knife isv covered by a guard 3 whose central area 4, isdepressed to lie slightly below the plane of the cutting edge of theknife 2. A gauge plate is disposed radially adjacent the cutting edge ofthe rotary knife 2 and is adjustable in elevation with respect theretoso that the thicknesses of the slices may be varied. A commodity carrier6 comprising a commodity clamp l and a vertical commodity tray 8. issupported so that it may be reciprocated along a path overlying thegauge plate 5, the edge of the rotary knife 2 and the depressed portion4 of the guard 3. A conveyor 9 is: located below the gauge plate 5 andextends into the space beneath the rotary knife 2-, As a meat or otherproduct is slicedduring a forward motion of the commodity carrier 6 theslices fall onto theconveyor 9 in position to bestacked. A deflector IDforming part of the main frame of the slicer aids in properlypositioningthe slices onthe conveyor 9.

A motor ll (seeFi-gure III) mounted with-in the main frame I is providedwith an armature shaft |-2- which extends intoa; gear housing, l-3. Thearmature shaft 52 is provided with a lefthanded double lead; worm l4 anda single lead right hand worm l5. The double lead lefthand form 14meshes with a small worm wheel I6 mounted on a vertical shaft l1carrying the rotary knife 2. The; right hand worm l5. meshes with alarger worm wheel l8 mounted on a vertical shaft 19 to whose lower end acrank, arm 20 is attached. The crank; arm- 20 acts through a connectingrod 2| to reciprocate a carriage 22 along a guide rod or way 23. Theaxis of the shaft 19. is displaced laterally from the extension of thepath of movement of the carriage 22 so that during the, forward orslicing stroke the connecting rod 2| lies substantially parallel to thepath of the carriage. This arrangement tends toward a slow forwardstroke and a quick return stroke.

The details of construction of the knife guard 3; andits relation to theknife 2 are illustrated in- Figure IV. In the, space beneath the knifethe base I is formed with a turned-in rim 24 to which a grease shield 25is attached. The grease shield 25 is designed to prevent the ingross ofmeat particles and other debris into the space beneath the knife andaround the gear housing l3. It will also be noticed in Figure IV thatthe depressed portion 4 of the knife guard 3 lies in a. plane slightlybelow the edge of the knife 2. 1

The gauge plate 5 has an arcuate edge shaped to fit along a portion ofthe periphery of the knife 2 and lies in the same general horizontalplane. Adjacent the gauge plate 5 the knife guard is cut away so that acommodity clamped in the commodity carrier may be carried past therotary knife and a slice removed. By setting the depressed portion 4 ofthe knife guard 3 below the plane of the knife 2 rubbing frictionbetween the clamped commodity and the knife guard is materially reduced.This presents. an improvement over the ordinary slicing machine in whichthe commodity is not clamped but is urged toward the knife at all timesso that, unavoidably, a substantial force is exerted against the knifeguard.

The gauge plate'5. is adjustably mounted on a bracket 26v which includesvertical rods 2.1. The rods 21 slide in holes. bored in bosses 28 and 29formed integrally with the base I. One of the rods 21. has rack teeth 30out. along one of; its sides so that, the height of the gauge plate maybe adjusted by manipulation of a knob 34 attached to the'outer endof ashaft 32 whose inner end is provided with teeth 33, meshing with therack teeth 3D. The end of the. shaft 32 adjacent. the teeth 33. isjournaled in. an arm 34. extending from an inside wall 35 of the. baseI- A collar 36 secured. o. the shaft 32 prevents longitudinal motion ofthe shaft 32 which might disengage the teeth 33 from the rack 30,. Thecollar 36 is held in frictional contact with the arm 34 by means of asecond collar 31 and a compression spring 3.8 so as to produce enoughfriction between thefirst collar 36 and the arm 3.4. to hold the gaugevplatefirmly in, adjusted position. I

The radial clearance between the gauge plate and. the rotary knife 2 maybe adjusted, to compensate, for changes diameter of the kniffe as it issharpened by loosening bolts 39 and, sliding the gauge plate withrespect to the bracket. 26. The mounting holes 40in supporting arms 4|of the gauge plate through which the bolts 39 pass are elongated toprovide for this adjustment. Further, to permit a smooth. continuousupper surface the, gauge plate; 5 is; secured to the arms 4| by means ofscrews; 4-2 which enga e nuts. 43 welded o he unde surfa e of the g u pate (this construction is; shown Figure VIII).

The surface of the conveyor 9; is formed of a plurality of rods. 4.4whose ends are connectedv by links 45. thereby forming; an, endlesschain which runs over sprocket 4.6 arried on. anaaxl 11 1- naled in-one,end of a frame 48. At the other end of the frame 48; another axle. 4.95iSjQu'rnaJ- h. hi axle carrying guide'pulleys 5.!) to. support, theother end, ofthe conveyor chain. When; assembled in the main base I;the; outer edge 5i of the conveyor frame 48 forms a continuation of theside wall of the main frame I. The, conveyor frame 48 is, lo.- cated andheld in position by screw heads 52 which engage corresponding sockets.53 in cross ribs of the main base I. The axle 4,1 carrying the driving.sprockets 4.6; is provided with squared ends 54 and 55 one of, which,engages; a square socket in the end of a stub shaft 56 journaled in thewall 5| of the frame 48. The outer end of the stub shaft 56 is providedwith a knob 51 thus providing a means for manually advancing theconveyor. When the conveyor frame 48 is in position in the main base theother square end 55 of the axle 41 engages a square recess in the end ofa' second stub shaft 58 which is journaled in the inner wall 35 of themain frame I. The other end of this stub shaft 58 carries a ratchetwheel58. (See Figure VII.) The ratchet wheel 59 is engaged by a pair ofclicks 68, mounted in an oscillatory frame 6| which is pivoted on thestub shaft 58. The frame BI is provided with a. laterally extending stud62 whose outer end is contacted by a finger 63 extending from thecarriage 22 when the carriage reaches the end of its stroke. When thefinger G3 strikes the stud 82 the frame 6| is rotated clockwise, as seenin Figure VII, to advance the conveyor a prescribed amount. The advanceis controlled by a spiral cam 64 which, by engaging a second stud 65extending laterally from the frame 6|, limits the counterclockwisemovement of the frame 6|. The spiral cam 64 is formed with a sleeve 66which extends through a side wall of the base and on its outer end isprovided with an adjusting knob 61. The sleeve 66 accommodates the gaugeplate adjusting shaft 32. A compression spring 68 located between thespiral cam 64 and the wall of the base provides sufficient friction tohold the cam in adjusted position. The cam 64 by engaging the stud 65cooperates with a tension spring 69 connected between a stud 10 set inthe wall 35 and the upper end of the frame 5| to position the frame andthus determine the number of teeth of the ratchet wheel 59 which arepicked up by the clicks 60 and hence the advance of the conveyor foreach reciprocation of the carriage 22. The clicks 60 are made of unequallength so that one or the other of the clicks will always do the drivingthus having the effect of providing twice as many teeth on the ratchetwheel 59.

As was mentioned previously, the carriage 22 is reciprocated along theguide rod 23 by means of the connecting rod 2|. The carriage 22 isprevented from tipping sideways by a guide roller H journaled on avertical axle "l2, and running between guide rails 13 and 14 formedintegrally with the base The top of the carriage 22 extends upwardlythrough a slot 15 cut in the top of the housing to support the commoditycarrier 6. The commodity carrier 6 at a point near its connection to thecarriage 22 is provided with a vertical cylindrical portion 16 in whicha vertical shaft 11 is journaled. The commodity clamp I is carried onthe end of an arm 78 rigidly attached to the upper end of the verticalshaft 1'! and is urged into clamping engagement with the commodity by ahelical spring 19 circumjacently mounted upon the vertical shaft 17within the cylindrical portion 16 of the carrier. A ratchet wheel 80 andan actuator 8| are carried on the lower end of the vertical shaft 15,the ratchet wheel being pinned thereto and the actuator 8| being freelyjournaled thereon. The actuator 8| is urged in a clockwise direction, asseen from above, by a coil spring 82 acting between it and the commoditycarrier normal position, the pawls 84 are held free from the ratchetwheel by pins 81 extending downwardly from the frame of the commoditycarrier 6. In operation, when the commodity carrier approaches the endof its stroke and the commodity is over the gauge plate a finger 88extending laterally from the actuator 8| contacts a post 89 erected fromthe top surface of the base and thereby rotates the actuatorcounterclockwise through a small angle. The counterclockwise rotation ofthe actuator 8| frees the pawls 84 from the pins 81 and allows them tocome into contact with and rotate the ratchet wheel 80 against thetension of the spring 19 and thereby release the commodity clamp toallow the commodity to fall against the gauge plate. In the exampleshown three pawls areemployed and the ratchet wheel 80 is provided withsixteen teeth. Inasmuch as the pawls are evenly spaced only one of themwill drivingly engage a tooth and therefore the effect is the same as ifthere was one pawl and forty eight teeth. Different combinations ofpawls and ratchet teeth may be used to accomplish the same result.

In this commodity clamp as long as the commodity carrier 6 is not at theend of its travel the commodity is clamped securely under the influenceof the tension of the spring 19. Therefore, regardless of the size ofthe commodity it will be adequately clamped. At the end of the strokeover the gauge plate the clamp actuator BI is rotated sufficiently torelieve the pressure, but not sufficiently to allow the commodity tofall out of the tray.

The improved form of commodity clamp affords the advantage that thecommodity is securely clamped during the slicing operation and is notallowed to ride heavily upon the gauge plate or the knife guard, and yetis accurately fed at the start of each stroke to secure uniform slices.

This improved slicing machine thus affords in a compact structure theadvantages of automatic feeding, adequate clamping of a commodity duringslicing, substantial reduction of friction between the commodity and thegauge plate, knife, or knife guard, and automatic stacking of thesevered slices.

Having described the invention, we claim:

1. In a Slicing machine having a base, a horizontally disposed rotaryknife and a commodity tray mounted for reciprocation past the cuttingedge of the knife, in combination, a guage plate positioned radiallyadjacent the knife and adjustable in elevation with respect to theknife, means for reciprocating the commodity tray, a commodity clamppivotally mounted on the tray, a spring for urging the clamp against thetray, a toothed wheel attached to the commodity clamp, a ring carryingat least one pawl and encircling the toothed wheel, means for normallyholding the pawl out of engagement with the toothed wheel and means forimparting rotary movement to the ring so that the pawl engages thetoothed wheel and moves the clamp away from the tray against the forceof the spring.

2. In a slicing machine having a base, a horizontally disposed rotaryknife and a commodity tray mounted for reciprocation past the cuttingedge of the knife, in combination, a gauge plate positioned radiallyadjacent the knife and adjustable in elevation with respect to theknife, means for reciprocating the commodity tray, a commodity clampcarried on the tray, a spring for urging the clamp against the tray, aratchet Wheel operatively attached to the clamp, a pawl plate on thecarrier adjacent the ratchet wheel, means for moving the pawl platerelative to the carrier as the carrier approaches one end of its stroke,at least one pawl carried on the pawl plate normally out of engagementwith the ratchet wheel and adapted to cooperate with the ratchet wheelupon movement of the pawl plate to eifect release of the commodityclamp.

3. In a slicingv machine, in combination, a carrier that is reciprocatedpast the cutting edge of, a knife, a clamp that is carried on thecarrier, a spring that is mounted on the carrier and connected to theclamp to urge the clamp toward the commodityeto be clamped, a ratchetplate operatively connected to the clamp, said plate having a pluralityof teeth, a pawl plate carried on the carrier and movable with respectthereto to cooperate with the ratchet plate, a pawl on the pawl plate,means for holding the pawl out of engagement with the ratchet teeth, anda stop that engages the pawl plate .at an end of the stroke of thecarrier to drive the pawl into engagement with the ratchet plate todrive the clamp away from the commodity.

TRAVIS W. WINBERG. RAYMOND A. AMES.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS

